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10/9/2003

Computing conference to celebrate diversity, innovative research

The second biennial Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing Conference will take place Oct. 15-18 in Atlanta and will highlight creative, innovative and original research and applications of computing.

With the theme “Building Diverse Leadership in Computing,” the conference features a keynote address by Warren Washington, chair of the National Science Board, and a banquet address by Eloy Rodriguez of Cornell University. Other highly acclaimed plenary speakers include Peter Freeman, National Science Foundation; Jose Munoz, National Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Energy; Valerie Taylor, Texas A&M University; and Margaret Wright, New York University.

“The Tapia conference series has already become well known as an exciting, dynamic event at which we can discuss current research while honoring and enjoying the diversity of the participants,” said Bryant York of Portland State University and Tapia 2003 co-chair.

The conference honors Richard Tapia, the Noah Harding Professor of Computational and Applied Mathematics at Rice, and his contributions to the growth of diversity in computing and related disciplines. Tapia is internationally known for his research in computational and mathematical sciences and is a national leader in education and outreach programs. Among his honors are election to the National Academy of Engineering (1992); first recipient of the A. Nico Habermann Award from the Computing Research Association (1994) for outstanding contribution to aiding members of underrepresented groups within the computing community; the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring from President Clinton (1996); appointment by Clinton to the National Science Board (1996), the governing body of the National Science Foundation; and the establishment of a lecture series to honor Tapia and African American mathematician David Blackwell at Cornell University (2000). Tapia also received the Hispanic Engineer of the Year Award from Hispanic Engineer Magazine in 1996, and was inducted into the Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Awards Conference Hall of Fame in 1997.

“I feel a deep sense of gratitude that a symposium addressing a matter of such national importance carries my name,” Tapia said. “I want this symposium to serve as a symbol, and also as proof that we, as members of underrepresented groups, can and must contribute to science and technology at the highest levels.”

The Richard Tapia Celebration of Diversity in Computing 2003 conference is being planned by the Coalition to Diversify Computing (CDC), whose mission is to increase the visibility of people of color in computing research. CDC is a joint organization of the Association for Computing Machinery, the Computing Research Association and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Computer Society.

For more information on the symposium, visit <www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Conferences/Tapia2003/>.